Tuesday, February 25, 2014

My heart is full today. God is overwhelmingly good to me. All that He teaches me makes each new day even better (despite how I feel emotionally, physically, etc.). I am truly humbled by His extravagant, irrational love. I cannot understand how He loves but I am so glad He does.

I know everyone wants to know details on how I'm doing. I'll get that out of the way so I can write about more important things. I am really enjoying this diet I'm on. I don't know why they call it a diet. I'd prefer to call it "eating", but I didn't name it. Here is an example of what a day's meals consist of:

I am loving my cayenne pepper and anything HOT! You can see it on my omelet.
I feel like I'm eating like a king. It's all clean and organic. It makes me feel great. I have been struggling with my macros (fats, proteins carbs) and I am continuing to fine tune them. I immediately lost weight and I am trying to keep it on instead. Now I need to gain some back. I talk to my doctor this week about this. I'm just not sure what macros to alter to put the weight back on. I've read it takes about three months to get it worked out because the body is adapting to a new metabolism. I didn't realize how much I lacked in getting my vitamin and mineral levels in check and there have been some days when I felt weak and fatigued. Yeah, I should have followed my doctor's orders when she said to use Pink Salt each day. I thought I could do without it. Easy remedy. Got Pink Salt? I will continue to keep you updated. Meanwhile, if you are looking to lose weight, I highly recommend a low carb diet. Some people do a "dirty" version of the diet, eating pork rinds, lots of bacon, etc. But it is easily done using clean foods and organic (if you desire) foods.

I am still using other modalities in addition to the diet, such as iodine (Lugols), pancreatic enzymes, asidoll (digestive enzyme), green drinks, Pectasol C (modified citrus pectin), Liver capsules, melatonin (used in breast cancer treatment, not as a sleep aid), Vitamin D3, Vitamin C, multivitamin, DIM, Resveratrol, COQ10, Far Infared Dome, Chi machine, rebounding, breathing exercises...the list goes on. Most of all, I am still learning to trust God. I was reminded from a friend's blog this week of this verse:

Proverbs 3:5-6 Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to Him and He will make your paths straight.

I'm surrounded by people who encourage and love me daily. I'm so grateful. I think back sometimes to how I lived in the past. Even just a few years back. I wish I would have taught my kids to eat better, take better care of themselves, I wish I could teach them to cook and eat healthier and all the things I've learned lately about life and healing. They aren't at home anymore for me to teach them. Our loved ones see our flaws. They see us act like jerks. Now, I hope they see a better me and forget about the things I've done and haven't done. I want those close to me to see a woman humbly submitted to God, living each day to honor Him and joyfully rejoicing in that freedom.

Monday, February 3, 2014

Hello my friends! Grab your cup of herbal, caffeine free tea (mine is Pau D 'Arco) and let's chat! It's been a busy time since my last post. I've been busy getting healthier. To answer most people's first question, my most recent blood work was much better than what I posted on the last blog. Estrogen was lower (after much prayer and dietary changes). Dietary changes were taking a daily walk, adding chamomile tea daily, increasing vitamin D3, adding flax seeds to salads (daily), adding melatonin back into my daily supplements (not as a sleep aid - melatonin has strong benefits for breast health) and adding turmeric, cayenne and cinnamon to my food (every day). Yay! God has made food (not processed, fast or junk food, obviously) to benefit us. It can alter our mood, our hormones, our blood, our metabolism...our bodies are fueled by food.

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We are either promoting health or disease with EVERY thing we put into our mouths. What do you want to promote?

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I talk to people to talk about their health issues and I am learning that degenerative diseases are a problem for most people. Degenerative diseases are ailments that progressively worsen over time due to age and lifestyle choices. I have learned so much this past year from my research, talking with people, watching interviews or talks by various doctors and from my personal experience. I have come to learn that degenerative diseases can be avoided and/or treated by diet and lifestyle choices in most cases. We encourage degenerative disease by:

Being lazy. If you don't want to be a marathon runner or a gym junkie, fine. Just go for a walk every day. Make time to take a brisk walk for at least 15 minutes. Too cold out? Bundle up. Too dark? Walk at lunch. Got kids? Take them and give them a walking assignment (collect leaves, count steps, sing songs, etc). Got company? Tell them in advance that you walk each day and ask them to plan to join you. We make time for things that are important to us. This cartoon illustrates that.

Here is a list of some degenerative diseases. Some listed here may surprise you when you remember that I stated above that many issues can be avoided or treated with diet and lifestyle:

Alzheimer's

Parkinson's

MS

Heart disease

Cancers

Diabetes

Arthritis

Rheumatoid arthritis

Osteoarthritis

Osteoporosis

I have talked with people who have reversed heart disease, diabetes and cancer using diet and lifestyle choices. God created our bodies to heal themselves, provided we choose healthy foods and habits to fortify them. We will strengthen or weaken our body/mind with these choices. I don't know about you, but I don't want to miss work, family events, time with my family/friends due to illness. So I want to do all I can to encourage excellent health in my body. Ultimately, we are responsible for our own health. Medical doctors, for the most part, are schooled in medicine. Medications come with side effects that may or may not outweigh any benefits. I don't want to be reliant on medications and have to deal with their side effects. To me, eating healthy is enjoyable and I get to enjoy the positive side effects (LIFE AND VIBRANT HEALTH)!!

“Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food” - Hippocrates

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It hurts me to see people I care about (family or friends) suffering needlessly from bad health. Here is a question to ponder:

If I don't care enough about myself to pursue good health, why would I expect a doctor or my family or my children or my friends to take care of me when my health takes a turn for the worst?

This is my heart. I'm not trying to be harsh, but I realize these statements may come across that way. It would be a blessing to me if I can point someone in the right direction. Please ask me questions regarding health, etc. , if you'd like to. I will try to provide you with resources to help your specific situation. I only learn things because I seek out the answers. They are readily available.

In closing, my doctor recently suggested a trial period of a different nutritional therapy that has been found to shrink tumors. After much prayer and research, I agreed. My doctor and I believe that the Gerson therapy, for the past year, has strengthened my immune system and detoxed my body intensely. I have enjoyed Gerson and look forward to a new chapter of my life during this trial period of the new nutritional therapy. My supplements will vary only slightly but my foods will be vastly different. I am switching from an all organic, vegetarian (close to vegan) diet to a diet rich in healthy fats, moderate in protein and extremely low in carbohydrates. The goal is to starve my body of carbs (including naturally occurring sugar)(carbs and sugar fuel cancers) and fill it with healthy fats. This switches my metabolism from burning glucose to burning fat (in a nut shell). Some foods on this diet are:

Coconut oil, coconut butter, organic butter, olive oil, flax oil, nut oils, avocados, wild caught (in the US only) cold water fish, organic chicken, green leafy vegetables and ....EGGS!!! I have missed eggs! This diet is all clean and organic. No trans fats, fake food, no soy, no red meat, no pork, no grains, etc. I will keep you up to date.

Thanks for taking time to read this. I pray that it's useful to you. Thanks to everyone who is faithful to pray for me, thanking God for my healing and who bless me in various ways. Thank you for being a friend to me. I hope to hear from you.